The Iraqi television reporter who threw his shoes at former US president George W. Bush in one of the more bizarre episodes of the Iraq War might use his new iconic status in Iraq to promote humanitarian causes, his family said.
The reporter, Muntadhar al-Zeidi, is to be released on Monday after nine months in prison. He will be greeted by a nation where many feel his act of protest encapsulated their own bitterness over the war and US occupation.
Parties and music are planned at his family’s home in Baghdad, where his brother was hanging posters of him on Thursday. But the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who was deeply embarrassed by the outburst, will not be celebrating.
The prime minister was standing beside Bush during his final visit to Baghdad as president on Dec. 14 when the journalist shot up from his seat at a press conference and whipped his shoes one by one toward the president’s head while calling him a dog.
Bush was unhurt but had to duck twice in a stunning moment captured on TV and replayed countless times.
In March, al-Zeidi was convicted of assault. His three-year prison sentence was reduced to one because he had no prior record and now he is to be released three months early for good behavior.
Al-Zeidi, a 30-year-old bachelor who was a virtual unknown working for a minor TV network, now has undeniable star power and is contemplating his future.
“My understanding is that al-Zeidi might quit his work as a journalist because he is sure that he will be turned away or boycotted by government officials,” his brother Dargham said. “Rather, he told me he is interested in working in a humanitarian organization or becoming an activist for women’s and orphans’ rights.”
He has also had offers to go into politics for several independent parties, but he has declined, his brother said.
His employer, Al-Baghdadiya TV, is certain he will return to work there, however, in a comeback that would likely boost the small network’s viewership numbers. The Iraqi channel headquartered in Cairo has continued to pay his salary during his time in prison and even bought him a new house.
“As far as I know, and from what he has told me — and I speak to him weekly — he will come back to work for Al-Baghdadiya,” station manager Abdul-Hamid al-Sayah said.
The manager, speaking from Cairo, said the network continues to stand by him.
“We don’t condone a journalist using a shoe to express himself,” al-Sayah said. “But when you read his background and his story, you understand his frustration with the occupation and his nationalistic feelings.”
The station plans a press conference with al-Zeidi and a talk show appearance where he will explain his actions and assure fellow reporters that “he does understand and respect the noble profession of journalism,” al-Sayah said.
At al-Zeidi’s office in Baghdad on Thursday, a cleaner was dusting his chair and computer. Colleagues were hanging pictures, including one showing al-Zeidi flinging open a jail cell door and stepping out along with a pair of doves.
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